Cheerleading Music History

Cheer evokes school spirit. So it's important to select the right music for your cheer team. Music affects the team, the ones you're cheering for, and its spectators.

The first cheer music was a simple chant. In the early 1880s a small band of men at Princeton University chanted: "Rah rah rah, tiger tiger tiger, sis sis sis, boom boom ahhhhhh! Princeton Princeton Princeton!" The crowds went wild.

Before long, Princeton graduate Thomas Peebles introduced cheer to the University of Minnesota in 1884. Several years later, UM student Johnny Campbell directed the crowd in a chant, and made himself first "cheer leader" prior to the creation of the first "yell leader" squad. Music was added for affect, and the rest is history.

The Importance of Choosing the Right Cheer Music

Music and rhythm are essential elements to cheerleading. What would a cheer be, but a mere chant without it? The idea was originally to raise school morale, and no better way to do that, it was thought, than with rhythmic gymnastics moved to music. Now today, the sport of cheer has evolved from being merely a mode of moving the audience to root for their team, to winning national and international competitions. Custom quality cheer music can set your team apart from the competition, and separate the top cheer team from the rest. Poor quality music tells the audience and judges that your team is amateur.

Custom cheer music can be created and applied to entire routines. Most teams follow an eight count system of music so that cheer athletes can calculate their timing. They'll know how long to hold certain moves within the routine. Music provides cues for when stunts and certain dance moves are to be performed.

Where Can I Get Cheer Music?

Cheer music can be downloaded online, or mail ordered. Cheer music outlets generally offer premixed ready-made music, others offer mixes customized to your team's specific routines and style. Many downloads are available immediately upon purchase for anything from high schools, to all-star. Some companies can download mixes directly on to a CD. Outlets should provide pricing, samples of mixes, and revision policies.

Tips to Choosing the Right Cheer Tunes

Be selective. Cheer music directly reflects your team's quality and spirit. The right cheer music can set your team apart from the rest. No one likes to hear the same tunes played repeatedly at a national competition, so make sure your music stands out from the crowd. As with anything, there's cheap cheer music, and there's quality. Less expensive companies tend to recycle their mixes, and what results are tracks that begin to sound alike. Although they cost less, try and avoid pre-mixed, prepackaged tunes.

Try before you buy. Most online cheer music companies allow you to sample mixes and decide what's right for your spirited team before you make the purchase. Check the company's policy.

Want the prize? Customize. Good cheer music companies can tailor the length and order of your tunes to fit your routines, some at no additional fee. They'll carefully create professional sounding mixes; ones that can be used for a variety of stunts, at a variety of lengths. Whether it's for a cheer camp or cheer champ, get custom quality music.